Nintendo today announced that the company will replace some
3.2 million Wii Remote wrist straps after receiving numerous reports of the
straps breaking sending the controller flying. Nintendo will allow customers to
exchange their failure-prone wrist straps with a new beefier strap that is
about double the thickness of the original.

The new wrist strap is already included
with the latest machines shipped, but Nintendo estimates that it may have to
replace up to 3.2 million wrist straps, costing the company several million
dollars. The old straps, which were found to be especially prone to breaking,
had a 0.6 millimeter string diameter, while the new replacement strap features
a diameter of 1 millimeter.

"People tended to get a bit excited, especially while
playing Wii sports, and in some cases the control would come loose from their
hands," company spokesman Yasuhiro Minagawa said.
"The new strap will be almost twice as thick."

Nintendo has setup an online replacement
form for Wii customers so that they can get replacements for their Wii
Remote straps. Shipments will begin on December 21 and it will take 5 to 9 days
to receive replacements.